Dispatch from boot camp: work smarter

I was worried my week-long training program at USC, called News Entrepreneur Boot Camp, would bomb after I set such lofty goals (at one point I referred to it as a one-week MBA). But so far the program has exceeded my expectations in every way.

The schedule is very well organized and the speakers are amazing. My fellow participants have a tremendous variety of experience and expertise. The hotel is quite swanky and in addition to meals the drinks are included. Score!

A few things I have learned so far:

Online journalists need to keep the principles of print but toss (many of) the rules.

An entrepreneur is not a risk taker but a risk manager.

Upbeat folks like myself need to be a loudspeaker for successful journalism paths.

I must meet 250 strangers and talk to them about my business.

On the Web no one knows you’re a newspaper (a take off on a cartoon of a dog sitting at a computer with the caption “On the Web no one knows you’re a dog.”)

Before I sell an ad I need to know how the advertiser measures success.

Decide how I want people to interact with my site and take steps to reach those goals.

Do more marketing to broaden my exposure (which means more gift card giveaways are coming!)

Be willing to change course.

Dream big but take small steps.

All this in just the first two days! Everything I am learning is working toward the culminating event at boot camp: Thursday morning we each have five minutes to pitch our businesses to four big wigs (one venture capitalist, two bankers, and one “angel”). Holy $*&#^@!

Aside from THAT surprise, the biggest thing that has happened to me at boot camp is that I walked in identifying myself as a blogger, but now I know I am an entrepreneur. And I am at the beginning of something very exciting. Doh! I hope I didn’t just jinx myself.

Yes you are an enterpreneur. Making your enterprise a success will depend on your brains, your willingness to work hard, especially at learning and listening, having good luck in the contacts you make, and creating a product people want. Don’t waste time with BS about jinxes.